Bumping and Teasing
by InkyAndKinky
Summary: Mark has harbored feelings for Meredith since the first day they met. Meredith has found herself attracted to Mark soon after Derek left her for Rose. What happens when these two doctors bump into one another outside of work?
1. Running In The Rain

**Mark/Meredith pairing**

**Summary: Mark had harbored feelings for Meredith since the first day they met. Meredith has found herself attracted to Mark soon after Derek left her for Rose. What happens when these two doctors bump into one another outside of work?**

"Hey Iz, what are you baking?" Meredith asked as she made her way over to the kitchen. She sat down on a chair and watched as Izzie studied the side of what appeared to be a cake mix box.

Izzie had been having trouble sleeping for the past few nights and decided to take up baking again. Not that Meredith was complaining, she loved cupcakes and anything with sugar. She was just worried about her friend.

"I'm trying to make cake from a box. Crazy, right? I mean I just had this realization the other day that I had never made cake from a box and I decided to try it." Izzie smiled at Meredith as she showed the box to her. Before Meredith could make out the words on the front, Izzie spun it back around to look at the directions again.

"1/4 cup vegetable oil. Wait, oil, really? Why not butter or margarine?" Meredith watched Izzie for a few more minutes as she continued to debate the ingredients on the box before tying her shoes.

"Oh are you going somewhere? A date perhaps?" Izzie asked as she made her way around the island. She stopped for a second and looked Meredith up and down before speaking again. "Nope. Definitely not a date. Those are not date clothes." Izzie pointed to Meredith's outfit with her whisk which had started dripping cake batter. Meredith rolled her eyes and sighed as she got up from her seat and grabbed her phone.

"I am going running. I feel like I need to clear my head and move on with my life. Derek obviously moved on with his so why should I stay stuck in this crappy whatever this is." Meredith placed her phone back on the table and made big hand gestures towards the end of her rant. Izzie crossed her arms.

"Just because Derek is dating Rose it doesn't mean you have to start running and changing yourself. Besides, it's raining. Who runs in the rain?" Meredith's head turned towards the window. It was raining lightly. Why hadn't she thought to check the weather beforehand? Izzie put on a victorious smirk and turned back towards the island where she continued her baking. Meredith huffed for a second and then responded.

"Well I guess I'm running in the rain then. Don't wait up!" Before Izzie could say another word, Meredith ran out the door. Izzie rolled her eyes and laughed as she noticed that Meredith had left her phone on the table.

"She'll be back. There is no way she'd forget that." But the minutes went by and there was no sign of Meredith coming back to retrieve her forgotten item.

As Meredith ran outside the house, she made a mental note to apologize to Izzie later. She didn't want her roommate to feel like she was running from her rather than her inner demons. Meredith stopped after a few minutes and looked around. She never ran before and so she was trying to figure out where she should go from here. The waterfront was always a good option. There were always people around, ferry rides, and the view was incredible. Meredith nodded to herself as she set off to her destination.

She made it to the waterfront in one piece. Meredith stopped and decided to take a look around. There weren't too many people, probably because of the rain and whatever time it was. It was when she decided to check the time that she realized she didn't have her phone on her. "Shit." Meredith said aloud before another body collided into hers. She felt herself fall back but before her body could hit the ground, a pair of strong arms pulled her close.

"I'm so sorry I-" Meredith immediately shut up as she looked into the eyes of one Mark Sloan.

"Grey, you should be a little more careful, huh?" Mark said with his cheeky smile. He looked into Meredith's eyes and there was an immediate spark between the two. They both smiled and Meredith looked down as Mark continued to hold her. When they realized this, Mark awkwardly let go and Meredith immediately missed the warmth his body brought to hers. "I'll try to look where I'm going next time it's just that I realized I didn't have my phone on me and I was trying to look and see what time it was." Meredith rambled a bit as Mark continued to look down at her. She looks so cute when she rambles. Meredith tucked a strand of wet hair behind her ear. The rain had been picking up ever since she left her house and now is when she realized it. Before either of them could utter another word, a loud clap of thunder rippled through the sky. Meredith jumped as Mark's eyes flinched.

"Why don't I take you back to my place to get dried up and then I'll drive you home? I wouldn't want a pretty girl like you to be running home in a storm like this." Meredith blushed and nodded as Mark took off his jacket and wrapped it around her petite form.

"Thank you, Dr Sloan." Meredith said nervously.

"Oh please, call me Mark. Or you could even say McSteamy if you prefer." Mark joked and winked at her as they crossed a street. The next few block were walked in a comfortable silence between the two, Mark had his arms wrapped around Meredith as she nestled into his side. Soon enough, they arrived at Mark's hotel and were standing in the elevator. Mark looked down at Meredith as she was thinking of something to talk about, not noticing his eyes on hers. Mark reached down and tucked a strand of Meredith's hair behind her ear. She stood holding her breath as her heartbeat sped up. As Mark began to lower his head towards hers the elevator came to a stop and an elderly couple walked in. Mark immediately pulled his head back from Meredith with an apologetic smile, still keeping his arm wrapped around her.

"Oh how sweet. Young love." The elderly women said as she observed the two. The comment turned Meredith's cheeks red and Mark smirked before responding.

"Thank you, miss. We're actually here on our honeymoon. Meri insisted on coming to Seattle to see the space needle but with this weather I don't know if we'll make it." Meredith turned her head to make at his comment and widened her eyes.

"Is that right? Well I'm sure this weekend will be clear after this storm stops. The forecast said it'll last until tomorrow night. Can you believe it?" The elderly man said as his wife continued to admire the young couple.

"Ah this is our stop. It was a pleasure meeting you." The elderly couple said as they got off the elevator. The doors closed and it was once again just the two of them.

"So sweetie, we're going to see the space needle are we?" Meredith asked with a playful smile on her face. Mark laughed and decided to play along.

"If the rain clears out by this weekend then of course we will babe." The elevator doors opened and they stepped out. Mark pulled out his keycard from his pocket and unlocked the door. As he pushed it open, Meredith's mouth fell open.

"This is your hotel room? It looks like the inside of a mansion." Meredith stepped inside and took some time to look around, not noticing that Mark had left and returned with a shirt and boxers for her.

"Thanks." She said as he passed them to her. He walked into his bedroom and she began to peel off her shirt and pants. The water had soaked through everything.

"Just leave your things on the table and I'll put it in the dryer." Mark said from the other room. Meredith turned towards his voice and froze. He was standing in his bedroom with nothing but a pair of fresh boxers on. He turned towards the opening of his room and found her staring at him wearing bras and panties that were practically see-through with the amount of water they contained. They both averted their eyes at the same time and Mark decided to stay as he was and try to mess with Meredith. Meredith noticed this and decided to take it one step further. Two can play at that game. She turned her back towards Mark and removed her bra before slipping on his shirt. She then removed her panties, seeing as how his shirt fell to her mid-thighs. As she turned back around, she noticed a darkening in Mark's eyes.

"I don't think I'll be needing this." She said as she placed the boxers Mark had given her in his hands. He swallowed hard and nodded as he tossed the pair of boxers into his room. He then picked up Meredith's wet clothes and threw it in the dryer. While he did this, Meredith had made herself comfortable on Mark's couch and was flipping through channels before landing on the news channel.

"Oh shit." She said to herself as the weather man explained the storm to everyone.

"What?" Mark asked as he returned from the laundry room. He sat on the couch and lifted Meredith's legs so he could sit in the space they occupied.

"The rain storm turned into flooding and they said it's safest to stay where you are right now. No one should leave their house." Mark nodded and focused on the tv as he subconsciously started to massage Meredith's legs. Meredith decided to change the channel after a while and they ended up watching Friends. When that finished, Meredith shut the tv off and they decided to play truth or dare.

"Truth or dare?" Meredith asked while turning her body towards Mark.

"Dare." Mark said as he flashed her his McSteamy smile.

"I dare you to order everything off the menu." She said as she pointed towards the hotel's food menu.

"Easy." Mark said as he got up and ordered the food. She could hear the person on the other side of the phone confirming the purchase and trying to figure out if Mark was drunk. She burst out laughing as soon as the phone hung up.

"Your turn Grey, truth or dare?"

"Mmm truth."

"If I was the last man on Earth, would you date me?"

"I would date you even if you _weren't_ the last man on Earth." Meredith blushed as she answered and tried to hide her eyes. Mark noticed this and felt his heart soar.

"Truth or dare?" Meredith asked as she cleared her throat.

"Let's go with truth this time."

Meredith took some time to think about her question before asking.

"If Derek never punched you the first day that we met, what would have happened between us?"

Mark looked surprised at the question but decided to answer it as honestly as he could. He had thought a lot about this before.

"Well, I probably would've gotten your number and asked you out. You would've played hard to get and I would've let you. Then you would've seen that you actually really liked me and we would've gone out for a few dates before it went anywhere serious, which I imagine it would've." Mark smiled at the thought as Meredith felt her heart skip a beat. Mark shook his thoughts out of his head.

"Your turn again Meredith. Truth or dare?"

"Dare."

Mark grinned and got an evil look on his face. "I dare you to give me a lap dance."

Meredith shrugged and made Mark get up before sitting him in a chair. She walked over to the tv and played a song before coming to stand in front of him. As she performed the lap dance, Mark felt his blood rushing through his veins and he had to suppress any urges he had. Meredith noticed this and took things a little further. She sat down fully on Mark'a lap and started to rub her ass in any and all directions as her mouth came to Mark's ear. The intensity in the room was building and Mark places his hand on Meredith's hips as he realized that she wasn't wearing any underwear. With no warning at all, Mark lifted Meredith's body as he brought her to his bedroom. He dropped her down and fell on top of her as their lips finally met. It was the most passionate kiss that either of them had experienced and if not for the phone ringing, it would've escalated into something more. They quickly pulled apart as if realizing the consequences of what they had done. Mark rushed to answer his phone and as he put it down he started to laugh. Meredith looked at him curiously.

"Food's ready." He simply responded as she let out a small giggle. They both heard a knock at the door and Mark went to answer it. Meredith couldn't make out the exchange taking place but was unbothered by it as she began to remember the things that had previously taken place just moments ago. She touched her lips faintly and smiled. Nobody had ever kissed her like that before. While Meredith became caught up in her own fantasies of what might have happened if the phone didn't ring, Mark entered the room.

"Are you hungry? I'm pretty sure I could feed all of Seattle with the amount of food they brought in." Meredith raised her head and looked at him, really looked at him. She got up and walked straight to Mark. When she reached him, she planted her lips on his and kissed him deeply. He eagerly returned the favor and held her close. They let go to take a breath of air and Meredith patted his chest as she walked past him.

"Where are you going Grey?" He asked confused as to what had just happened.

"Well you just asked if I was hungry so I'm going to eat a quick snack. Feel free to join me." Mark smirked as he followed her into the kitchen. She knew how to tease a man, that was for sure.

**A/N I'm not sure if I want to continue this yet but feel free to leave reviews on whether or not I should. I hoped you enjoyed and I understand that not everyone ships Mark and Meredith so please don't complain about the pairing. I'm not here to upset anyone, I am a huge Merder and Mark/Lexie shipper but I also like to write stories about characters who never really had a chance on the show.**


	2. It Takes Two

**A/N - So a lot of you really enjoyed the first chapter and asked me to continue it and here it is. I think I'm going to try and continue with this story and hopefully I won't dissapoint. I hope you enjoy it!**

Meredith walked out of the bedroom and froze. There were about a dozen carts of food piling up in the living room/kitchen area. She walked past each cart and grabbed a plate before picking what she wanted. She returned to the bedroom and found Mark sitting on the bed, watching tv. She walked around the bed and sat in the area next to him.

"What did you finally decide on eating?" He asked as he looked over at her plate. As he did this he laughed and reached for a cookie.

"What's so funny?" Meredith asked as she slapped at his hand. He paid no mind to the slap and continued to steal the treat from her.

"You only brought back sweets. I would have figured you wanted real food." Meredith shrugged at that and gave up trying to protect her food from Mark.

"Yeah, well, I like dessert." As she said this, Meredith grabbed a strawberry and dipped it into some whipped cream before placing it delicately into her mouth. Mark noticed this and held back a whimper. He knew Meredith was just trying to tease him. He could tell by the glint in her eyes that she was trying to mess around with him as he had done before. But after the kiss, it felt like something more. It seemed like she was trying to hint something at him. Mark decided to take his chances and left the room with one goal in mind.

"Hey where are you going?" Meredith sat up as she saw him leave and raised an eyebrow at his actions. She placed her plate on the nightstand as she moved to stand up. He came back in a few seconds later with a can of whipped cream.

"What is that for?" Meredith asked as Mark sat back next to her. Mark turned towards her and had the most devilish look on his face. Before Meredith could speculate on why he would need a whole can of whipped cream, he sprayed some on her neck. Meredith let out a playful scream as she looked at Mark. He moved his head towards her neck and licked it all up. A slight moan escaped her lips as she felt Mark sucking up every last trace of the cream.

"Mmmm Mark, wait, stop." Mark stopped as he heard his name and backed up. Maybe this isn't what she wanted. He moved to stand and felt Meredith grab his arm as he did so.

"I didn't mean it like that, Mark... I meant it like this." Meredith grabbed the can out of his other hand and sprayed the whipped cream all over his chest as she pushed him down onto the bed. She then proceeded to mimic what he did on her neck which had the same outcome for Mark as it did for her. Once she finished, she sat up and had her legs on either side of Mark's hips. They both looked at one another and smiled. This was where they both wanted to be, there was no doubt about that. Suddenly, Mark flipped them so he was on top of Meredith and she let out a startled laugh. Mark tucked a strand of hair behind her ear as he admired her beauty. Mark had harbored feelings for Meredith since the first day they met. He didn't know if it was her beauty or her wit or even her contagious smile. He just knew that he wanted to wake up and see her face everyday, even if it meant losing the closest thing he had to a brother.

"What are you thinking of?" Meredith asked.

"You." Mark answered simply. He leaned down and kissed her. This time it was different. There was no rush or intensity like the last time. This kiss was full of passion and love, something Meredith had been craving for a long time. Mark pulled back and looked at Meredith seriously.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" She nodded her head as she smiled shyly.

"I'm sure." Mark nodded and leaned down once again to kiss her. This kiss went from passionate and loving to eager and a little needy. They both broke apart and Mark placed his hands on the end of Meredith's (his) shirt.

"Once we do this we can't go back Meri. So I'm going to ask you again. Are you sure?" Meredith felt tears coming to her eyes as she looked at Mark. No one had ever cared this much to ask her if she was sure. Nobody had ever made her feel protected as she did with Mark. She felt a tear slide down her cheek as Mark moved away from her.

"Are you okay? Did I hurt you? Do you not want this?" Meredith sat up and wiped at her eyes. She let out a laugh as she looked at Mark and held his hand.

"I do it's just... Nobody has ever cared that much about what I wanted. Nobody ever made it a point to ask if I was sure about _this_." She felt more tears fall as she said this and Mark smiled gently at her. He pulled her in for a hug and let her cry on his shoulder. Nothing was said in the three minutes she did this but there was nothing to be said. When her crying finally stopped, Mark decided to speak.

"Why don't we watch a movie instead?" Meredith nodded against his shoulder and moved to sit next to him again.

"You're not like any other guy I've met, Mark. I hope... I hope you'll give me a second chance at this." Meredith waved her arm around the room and looked back at Mark with a sad expression on her face.

"Meredith Grey, you are stupid if you think you need a second chance. You are doing great on your first one and if anything I should be asking for another chance at this. Any guy would be lucky to have you and I'm going to try my best to make that guy me." Meredith laughed as Mark pulled her close and pressed play on the movie.

"Thank you Mark. I really appreciate it, I appreciate _you... _What movie are we watching?"

"It Takes Two." Meredith snuggled in closer to Mark as she looked up at him.

"I love this movie."

"Me too." Throughout the movie, Mark focused all of his attention on Meredith. He couldn't believe how anyone could just let her go. She was one in a million, and he should know seeing as how he slept with so many women. There was just something about her. When he noticed she had fallen asleep, he kissed her head and whispered in her ear.

"I'm going to give you your can't eat, can't sleep, reach for the stars, over the fence, World Series kind of love. You are perfect Meredith Grey and I plan on never letting you go."


	3. The Morning After

**A/N I tried to make this chapter a little longer and I'm blown away by the amount of reviews that it has received so far. For those of you who said it was not believable with Mark falling so fast, there will be chapters that go back to before this incident and show how their relationship sort of developed over time. Believe me, I can see how it looks and how it seems to be moving fast but I plan on making everything come together for a smooth transition. That being said, enjoy this chapter.**

Meredith woke up to the sound of thunder and the room shaking. She sat up startled and looked around. It took a few moments for her eyes to adjust to the darkness and for her brain to start working again. Running, Mark, hotel, food, crying. Ah, yes. Now the memories were back and so was her embarrassment. She couldn't believe that she had cried not only in front of, but _on_ Mark Sloan. She turned to look at his sleeping form next to her. He looked so peaceful while he slept. She smirked as he let out a light snore. Meredith turned towards the nightstand and looked at the clock. _5am_. Great, she had to get ready for work. As she stood up and turned the lights on, she heard Mark mumble something.

"Grey... no work... rain... bad." Meredith raised an eyebrow at Mark and shoved him slightly in an attempt to wake him up. This proved useless and so she decided to try something else. She turned on the tv, went to the music channel, and raised the volume. She only raised it enough so that it was loud in their room and wouldn't disrupt the rooms around them. Mark slowly opened his eyes and smiled at the sight before him. Meredith had the tv control in one hand and the other was placed on her hip. She was still wearing his shirt from yesterday and her hair was slightly messy. She looked gorgeous even when she had just woken up.

"What did you say about work?" She asked as she lowered the tv back to its original volume. It took Mark a few minutes to understand what she meant.

"Oh yeah the hospital called and said for no one to come in unless you are absolutely needed or live within a five block radius. Apparently there have been multiple car accidents and flooding. It's very close to being a state of emergency." Rather than feeling surprised or shocked, Meredith felt kind of disappointed. She loved working and would have loved to scrub in on multiple surgeries. But as she looked back at Mark, she knew that she would rather be here than stuck with Izzie and her endless baking. She loved Izzie but she also loved being able to eat a cupcake without having five more shoved in her direction.

"What's on your mind, Grey?" Mark asked as he stretched in the bed. Meredith watched him with a slight blush on her cheeks as he did this. Last night she didn't have the chance to admire his abs and now they were on full display.

"Meredith?" Mark asked as he caught her checking him out.

"Oh, um, right. I was just thinking of food. I think I'm going to go eat now. Do you want me to get anything for you?" She tried to cover for herself as best as she could. She knew Mark could see through it but he decided to ignore it for now.

"No I'll get it myself. I put everything away last night so that it didn't spoil." He stood and made it a point to stretch again and watched as Meredith mumbled an excuse before rushing out of the room. This is going to be fun. Mark then exited the bedroom in hopes of spending more time with Meredith.

After they ate breakfast, they sat in the living room and had decided to talk and get to know one another. They couldn't very well spend the day together and not talk. They both sat facing one another on the couch and Meredith pulled her legs slightly under her. Mark had asked about Meredith's childhood and what it was like to grow up with a famous surgeon for a mother.

"If I'm being honest, it was horrible. She was never around and when she was, she was either busy with work from the hospital or didn't want me to bother her with anything. I was really close with some of my nannies but Ellis never kept one for too long. Well, except for Adeline. They got along fairly well and the only reason Adeline left was because she moved back to Texas to take care of her mother." As Meredith said this she had a small smile on her lips. Thinking of Adeline brought back so many joyful memories for her. She hadn't thought of her in a long time.

"Well what about your father?" Mark asked. At this, Meredith's smile fell and her expression turned slightly cold.

"There's not much to say, he left my mother when I was a kid and abandoned me in the process." She stood and walked into the kitchen before returning with a bottle of tequila. She plopped down onto the couch and opened the bottle. She took a swig of alcohol and let out a sigh. The burning sensation in her throat felt like a breath of fresh air. She then turned to Mark as she thought of a question.

"So what about you? What's your family like?" Mark cringed and stole the bottle from Meredith. He drank some of the liquid and passed it back to her.

"My father was a deadbeat, he left when I was around ten and my mother was a drug user who forgot she had a son most days. The only reason I'm not as screwed up as them is probably because of Derek's mother. She took me in and helped me learn what it meant to be part a family." Meredith nodded in understanding. She wished she could have had someone like that for her. Nannies were great but to be part of something so precious and to have multiple people to love unconditionally, that was what she always wanted. There was silence for a moment as they both were reminded of their childhoods. Mark cleared his throat and spoke.

"So Grey, do you ever think you'd want to have dinner with me? Like on a date?" Right when Meredith was about to answer the question, a phone rang. They both turned their heads to the bedroom and got up to see whose it was. They found the phone under the nightstand. It was Mark's phone. He answered the call and Meredith could only hear his side of the conversation.

"Hello... Yes... Now?... Of course... Give me half an hour... Bye..." Mark turned to Meredith with a strange expression on his face. "The hospital called and they need me. You want a ride?" Meredith simply nodded as Mark moved to get dressed. She left the room in search of her (now) dry clothes from the night before and quickly threw them on. When she turned, Mark was already at the door, grabbing his car keys.

"Oh wait!" Meredith said as she ran to grab some Tupperwares and threw a whole bunch of food into them.

"We'll probably be stuck there for a while and I don't want this food to go to waste." Mark nodded and grabbed a book bag from his closet. They quickly piled the food containers inside before leaving the hotel room. The elevator arrived immediately and they stepped in. Meredith looked up at Mark as he focused on the floor numbers.

"Yes." She said as he looked at her confused.

"Yes?" He questioned as Meredith stepped closer.

"You asked if I would like to go on a date with you and my answer is yes." Mark's confusion vanished and was replaced with a joyful expression on his face. Meredith leaned up and kissed him softly on the lips. She then pulled apart and blushed. Mark smiled down at her as the elevator doors opened.

"Oh sweetie look it's the honeymooners." The same old woman and her husband from yesterday walked into the elevator. Meredith and Mark looked at one another and laughed a little.

"Where are you lovebirds off to?" The woman asked.

"Me and the Mrs have decided to explore some places." As he said this, Mark places his arm around Meredith.

"Oh, I don't know if that's such a good idea with the storm going on." Mark and Meredith nodded.

"We promise to be extra careful." Mark said as the elevator doors opened again. The couple got off and said their goodbyes. Mark kept his arm around Meredith as the elevator ride continued into the parking garage. Luckily this hotel had extra flood precautions and the parking garage was not flooded. That would've been bad for business. The walk to Mark's car was silent. Once they got inside, Meredith decided to finally speak.

"So I don't want to freak you out or anything but what are we now?" Mark paused and turned to look at her.

"I guess we are people who are dating." Meredith seemed to accept his answer with a nod. As Mark turned on the car and began driving, he held Meredith's hand. Meredith smiled to herself as this happened. Her smile immediately vanished as they left the parking garage.

"Holy shit." She said as her and Mark's hands broke apart. The storm wasn't like anything she'd seen before. The wind was slightly moving the car and she could barely see out of the windshield. The rain was pouring extremely hard and it looked like something out of a movie. Mark had to drive extremely slowly to get to the hospital and it took three times as long as it normally would. When Mark parked in front of the hospital, they both sat in silence for a minute, trying to formulate a plan.

"Okay I got it. I will leave first, walk around the car and get you, and then we'll run into the hospital and hope we're going the right way." Meredith nodded as she continued to watch the rain pour down. Mark opened his door and was immediately soaked. He could feel about a foot of water as soon as he stepped outside. This was not going to be easy. He walked around the car, keeping his hand on it, and opened Meredith's door. She stepped out and they held hands as they both ran for the entrance to the hospital.


	4. High As A Kite

**A/N Thanks so much for the amazing reviews and I just have to say that I have never been more motivated to write a story more. I feel like that might be due to the fact that they never were featured as a couple and so there are endless possibilities of what to write. I am so inspired by all of you who have taken the time to read, follow, favorite, and/or review this story. I hope you enjoy this chapter!**

As they ran for the entrance, Meredith's heart was racing. She had never experienced anything like this in her life and it terrified her. She felt like she might drown just from standing in the rain too long. Mark pulled Meredith out of her thoughts as he yelled over the wind and rain.

"I think we're almost there!" As he said this, they heard something scraping against the ground and hitting the water in their direction. Mark grabbed onto Meredith's waist firmly and pushed her with him as they dove ahead. Whatever that noise was, it sounded big and dangerous. Meredith let out a scream as she felt something hit her ankle. It didn't help that the water was constantly crashing back and forth, hitting the area that had just been injured.

"What is it? What's wrong?" Mark asked as the wind picked up.

"My ankle I think something hit it, I can't move it!" Yelling over the storm felt draining and Meredith could feel herself getting tired. Mark picked her up bridal style and continued running towards the entrance. It took a good few minutes but they finally made it inside. The hospital was surprisingly empty, except for a few people gathered in the waiting area. As they stepped inside, a few nurses took notice and ran over. Mark shoved past them with Meredith still in his arms. He walked with her all the way to the emergency room. He could now see where most of the hospital staff had been.

There were multiple injuries, extra beds laid out, and even some nurses helping out with stitching. It looked like a rough day in the ER. Mark walked around the room with Meredith and placed her on an available bed. It was then that he noticed the amount of blood coming out of her ankle. It looked like whatever hit it had cut through her skin and made it down to her bone. Looking around, he spotted a nurse a few feet away from him.

"Page Dr Torres immediately." Mark said sternly as he once again looked at Meredith's ankle. The nurse nodded and walked off. Mark inhaled sharply before grabbing a pair of gloves and getting to work. Meredith was his number one priority at the moment. He injected her with some drugs for the pain and got to work on the sutures. He may not have been an orthopedic surgeon, but he at least knew to suture everything up so that it wouldn't get infected.

Meredith on the other hand, was enjoying the drugs. Whatever they were, they had made her feel warm and giggly inside. It reminded her of when she had first met Mark.

FLASHBACK

_Meredith was standing at the nurses station with a file in hand. She sighed as she looked at it. _

_"Invasive non-small-cell with a history of COPD? That guy's pretty much a goner." Meredith rolled her eyes at the comment and kept on reviewing the chart in front of her. _

_"Sensitivity. I like that in a stranger." Meredith closed the chart and turned to face the man who had interrupted her reading. She could tell that he was arrogant, egotistical, and overall annoying by how intrusive he was when it came to personal space. What Meredith did not expect was to meet a pair of sparkling blue eyes and the most handsome face she'd ever seen on a man. She had to stop herself from lowering her eyes to the rest of his body and checking him out in public. _

_"Are you new here?" She asked as she tried hard to not drool. This man looked like he had just walked out of a Calvin Klein magazine. His stance was relaxed as he leaned slightly on the counter. _

_"Visiting. Confounded by all the rain and it's only my first day in town." He gave a fake pout that made Meredith smile, something she hadn't done for weeks. _

_"You get used to it." She said as she made a step backwards, ready to head back to her patients. _

_"Makes me want to stay in bed all day." The man sent a flirtatious smile her way and stepped closer to her. _

_"We Just met and you're talking about bed. Not very subtle." As she said this, she could feel a pull in her body, telling her to listen to this man and enjoy herself. She hadn't felt this confident or enjoyed anyone's company ever since her and Derek broke things off. _

_"Subtle's never been my strong suit." He gave her another smile and made another step forward. _

_"So do you go out with coworkers?" At this, Meredith flinched slightly and her energy dissipated. Great, he probably just got offered a job here and she was about to repeat her last mistake. _

_"I make it a rule not to." _

_"Then I am so glad I don't work here." He leaned in as he said this and Meredith giggled. This man had come out of nowhere and brightened up her day much better than any surgery could've. _

_"Are you hitting on me? In a hospital?" _

_"Would that be wrong?" The man shrugged and held out his hand for her to shake. They smiled brightly at one another before speaking. _

_"Meredith." The man opened his mouth to respond and the next thing she knew, he was on the ground bleeding and Derek was being held back by Addison. Everything happened so quickly. She turned to Derek with anger fuming in her eyes. Derek had already done enough to upset her for a lifetime and now, when she was finally able to smile, he had to steal that away from her. _

_"What the hell was that?" Derek looked at her with a stone cold eyes and it made her heart sink in her chest. He was looking at her like how he looked at Addison when she first arrived. _

_"That was Mark." Meredith then turned to the man she had been flirting with only to see him standing a few feet away from her, clutching his cheek. She felt angry with herself for being so stupid. She should've known who he was. She looked back at Derek (who was standing side by side with Addison) and her thought process stopped. _Why should I stop talking to Mark just because Derek has an issue with him? _Meredith geared her anger towards Derek and held out a hand for Mark in the process. If Derek was going back to his wife, then she was going to start fresh with someone new._

"Meredith. Meredith, can you hear me?" Meredith slowly blinked her eyes open and looked around. She was in one of the rooms in the hospital. She turned her head and noticed Callie standing on her left, checking her stats and monitoring her breathing. She felt a squeeze on her right hand and turned her head the other way. Mark was sitting in a chair next to her bed. He smiled gently when he saw her face.

"Hey there good lookin." Meredith said in a light tone. Callie chuckled and looked at Mark.

"The drugs haven't worn off yet." Mark smirked and nodded.

"Hey Mer, how are you feeling? You had a nasty fall out there." Meredith continued to gaze at Mark, not realizing that words were coming out of his mouth. She placed her hand on his cheek and smiled.

"You're hot." Callie chuckled from the other side of the room. Mark gave her a look and she cleared her throat.

"Right, um, I'm gonna get going." She grabbed her things in a hurry and rushed out of the room to leave the two in privacy. Mark waited until the door shut behind her.

"Mer, how are you feeling?" He said this slowly and a bit louder than normal so that Meredith could understand that he was speaking to her.

"I'm feeling great sweetie, how are you feeling?" He smiled and kissed her forehead as she said this. She was adorable when she was trying to flirt with him while being high on pain medicine. Meredith moved her head and they met in a very sloppy kiss. Meredith moaned into his mouth and tried to bring him closer to her but Mark pulled away. He didn't want to do anything, especially since she was too high to know what she was doing. His pager beeped and as he checked it he stood up.

"I'm going to go see a patient but try and get some sleep, okay?" He kissed her forehead and moved for the door.

"Okay, McSteamy." Mark laughed at the nickname and continued on his way out. He almost bumped into someone but was too distracted to see who it was. He kept moving and made his way into his patient's room.

FLASHBACK

_Meredith was just about to fall asleep when a knock on her door woke her up. The person came in and Meredith didn't bother to hide her annoyance. She had just gotten her appendix removed and she didn't need to deal with any more stress in her life._

_"Ugh, what do you want from me now?"_

_"Meredith I just want to talk. Can we do that?" Addison took a seat next to Meredith's bed and sighed._

_"Fine. What do you want to 'talk about'." Meredith used air quotes as she said this and Addison had to bite down on her cheek to keep from smirking._

_"My husband." Meredith rolled her eyes and sat up._

_"Listen lady, McAsshole is yours. I don't want to be with someone who cheats and doesn't even tell his mistress that she is a mistress. I mean, how hard is it to say "hey I'm married". If I had known earlier Meredith and Derek wouldn't have happened. Believe me I know how affairs ruin marriages and I wouldn't want to be one of the factors of that happening." It was hard to take Meredith seriously when she was mumbling half of her words and high as a kite but Addison felt genuinely sorry for this woman. It was one thing to knowingly go out with a married man but it was a whole other thing to date someone and fall in love and then find out that they weren't who they said they were._

_"Do you really mean that?" Addison didn't know whether she could trust this woman or not. She felt conflicted on what to believe now that her life was turning upside down._

_"Of course I do. Who in their right mind would willingly have an affair with a married man? My childhood was ruined by it and I saw first hand how it destroyed my mother. I would never do that to anyone even if I hated their guts." Meredith said the last part with such a soft voice that Addison felt tears come to her eyes. She blinked them away and sighed._

_"Thanks." Addison grabbed Meredith's hand as she stood up to leave._

_"Oh and Addison?"_

_"Yeah?"_

_"You are really pretty and you're an amazing surgeon. Don't let McAsshole make you think otherwise." Addison let out a smile and laughed._

_"Back at you Mer." She gave Meredith's hand one last squeeze before leaving the room. _Damn, it was hard to hate that woman.

**A/N - Sorry guys I forgot to make the last part a flashback with Addison so it may have confused you. **


	5. Deja Vu

**A/N: Hey guys just to clear something up, Addison is staying in Seattle Grace instead of leaving to California. I decided to expand more on her character and to have her and Derek's marriage last a little while longer. Enjoy!**

Meredith woke up with a sigh and a dull pain in her ankle. She turned her head to the side and opened her eyes, expecting to see her alarm clock on her nightstand. Instead, she saw the walls of the hospital coated in a sheet of darkness. _It must be night. _She turned her head to the other side and her eyes fell on Mark Sloan who was snoring away while sitting on a chair beside her bed. He looked so peaceful while he slept. _So innocent._ Meredith was pulled out of her thoughts by the pain in her ankle. It seemed to hurt more the longer that she was awake. She hissed and tried to sit up straighter so that she could check it herself.

"Here, let me." Meredith almost jumped out of her skin at the sound of Mark's voice. She didn't realize he woke up. Mark moved and helped Meredith into a sitting position and added a heavier dosage on her IV. She should have received another dosage ten minutes ago but the nurse on-call must have been busy with other patients. Mark wrote down the dose in Meredith's chart and sat down beside her bed again. He grabbed her hand with one hand and the other was pushing her hair back. Meredith smiled at him and tried to keep her mind off of the pain.

"How are you feeling?" Mark asked. Meredith sighed and bit her lip.

"Well, I feel like someone smashed an axe into my ankle, which really hurts." She laughed at the end but it came out more pained than she meant it to sound. Mark stood up and carried Meredith so that he could place her on the right side of the bed.

"What are you doing?" She asked as he shifted her around.

"I'm going to lay with you until the pain goes away." Mark smiled his 'McSteamy' smile at her and kicked off his shoes before joining her on the small hospital bed. He placed one arm around her and the other he used to prop his head up and look at the gorgeous woman beside him.

"I can feel you staring." Meredith said as Mark continued to gaze at her.

"Sorry you're just incredibly beautiful." Meredith blushed and stayed quiet. Mark took this as his queue to close his eyes and rest. He fell asleep in a peaceful state and while he dreamed, Meredith recalled an event similar to this that took place around two years ago.

FLASHBACK

_Meredith woke up in her hospital bed and looked around. She was all alone, finally. She loved her friends but they hung around her every second of the day and it was starting to annoy her. She could understand the pressure with the merger and all, but she wasn't as involved as they were. They all had to fight for surgeries but she couldn't even leave her hospital bed without a nurse helping her. She sighed and was just about to turn on the television when she heard footsteps nearing her room. She assumed it was Izzie so she pretended like she was sleeping while whoever it was entered the room. The door shut and the person laid down next to Meredith and held her hand. _That's not Izzie's hand.

_"Meri, it's me. You're probably knocked out from the drugs and everything but I just want you to know that I love you. You are one of a kind and if Addison wasn't here, we'd still be together. I know this isn't fair but I'll find a way to make it work. I promise." Derek kissed Meredith's hand, stood up, and walked out. Once she couldn't hear his footsteps walking down the hallway, she broke down and allowed herself to cry. _Damn him and his stupid promises_. She wouldn't lie and say it didn't hurt. Meredith felt as though her heart had been ripped out and torn to shreds. She loved Derek, she probably always would, but how could she betray Addison and destroy his marriage? She would just have to learn to stay away. That was the only practical solution. _

_The door opened again and Meredith tried her best to wipe her tears away quickly. She looked up and found Mark looking down at her. He gave her a solemn look and climbed into the bed with her. He knew the effects Derek had on women. Mark held her as she cried her heart out and showed her what it was to care for another person. _

_The next morning when Meredith woke up, she was faced with an empty bed and her and Mark never talked about that moment again. It was an unspoken understanding between the two of them. No matter how much Derek had hurt her, Mark would be there to lend a shoulder and pick up the pieces._

Meredith woke up and smiled as she looked over at Mark. He had stayed the entire night simply holding her. She turned so that her entire body was facing his. She couldn't describe what had possessed her to do it, but she decided to lean in and kiss him on the lips to wake him up. She leaned back and looked at him as his eyes opened.

"Morning McSteamy." He smiled and propped his head up.

"Morning McGorgeous." Meredith laughed and copied his action in propping his head up. They both leaned in and met in a kiss that left them both gasping for air. Mark pulled Meredith's body closer and placed his mouth on hers once again. He flipped them so that he was hovering over her as she laid flat on the bed. She placed her arms around his neck and deepened the kiss. They continued their hot make out session for a few minutes until Mark's pager went off. They both laughed as they pulled apart and Mark stood from the bed.

"Duty calls." He have her a quick peck on the lips before heading for the door. He stopped suddenly, turned back to her, and placed his mouth firmly on Meredith's to leave her with a kiss much more passion filled than the one before. When they pulled apart, Meredith's heart was racing and her face was flushed .

"That's a goodbye." Mark smirked and then left the room. Meredith touched her lips gently and smiled. No one had ever kissed her the way he did. _Not even Derek._ She looked up at the ceiling and fell back into her bed. She wasn't usually an optimist, but it was hard not to imagine a future with Mark. He was just so... different. He made her feel alive and protected and like she was the only woman in the world. She could only hope that she didn't screw up this relationship like she did her others. She didn't want to find out whether or not she could handle another heart break. She just wanted a forever. _Is that so much to ask?_

**A/N: Hey guys I hope you enjoyed it! Please feel free to review this story and give me suggestions on what you want/think might happen next. I don't really have a set plan for where I want the story to go but I'm just taking it one step at a time. Have a nice morning/afternoon/night!**


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